(Newswire.net— September 2, 2020) — LOS ANGELES: Protesters hit the streets of Los Angeles on Tuesday after police officers shot and killed an African-American.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies shot and killed a black man who was driving his bicycle after they stopped him in an alleged “vehicle code violation,” WitnessLA reports.
It is the latest in a series of police killings of African-Americans, and the sheriff’s office and the victim’s family’s lawyer have given conflicting explanations for the incident.
The family of a 29-year-old Dijon Kizzee has demanded accountability and justice amid a fresh wave of protests. Kizzee was shot with more than 20 bullets in the back after two police officers tried to stop him due to a traffic violation, said Benjamin Kramp, the family’s lawyer.
“Right now I’m sad and I’m mad at the same time” Fletcher Fair, Kizzee’s aunt, told reporters on Tuesday. “Why us? We are tired. We are absolutely tired.”
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Office claims that around 20 bullets were fired at Kizzee.
The killing has sparked protests in the city again over police brutality against blacks across the country.
According to the police report, Kizzee was riding a bicycle in Westmont County on Monday afternoon when he was stopped by two police officers who drove up beside him. He threw his bike and started running, and the police chased after him, said the sheriff’s spokesman Brandon Dean.
Kizzee then allegedly punched one of them in the face and dropped the pile of clothes he was wearing. Police claim that there was a gun among the clothes and both officers shot at Kizzee, they said in their statement.
It was not immediately clear what vehicle code Kizzee had violated while riding his bike, as the police didn’t disclose details about the shooting, or what the status of the police officers involved in the incident was. Unlike the Los Angeles Police Department, sheriff’s deputies are not required to have body-worn cameras.
The incident sparked protests outside the Police station on Monday night, and a protest procession was announced from the place of the shooting to the sheriff’s office.